and I was told it holds a little under 6 quarts.....so we've got differing info.....an independent tranny company told me that

 

and it uses WS not ATF....not sure what you mean by ATF since I'm not a car guy

 

WS (World Standard) is Toyota's ATF (automatic transmission fluid) for this generation of vehicles.

 

so whoever does this should use ATF in your opinion? I don't work on cars

 

Toyota WS (google it) that is what your car uses.

 

thanks for the info

 

At least it had one ATF change!

WS is a type of ATF. Different vehicles with different transmissions or power Transfer units take different fluids to meet their unique mechanical requirements. I have done several drain and fills on Toyota and Lexus hybrids and always end up filling them with about 4 quarts before it spills out of the fill hole.
Find a nearby hybrid speciality shop to do the work. Google search hybrid shop near me. They will know what to do.

You may want to have them clean out the hybrid battery cooling fan ductwork and fan blades as a cool battery lasts longer. Dust gets in there as most of the RXs do not have a filter like the newer models.
This stuff is behind and under the back seat. The duct entrance is on the passenger floor somewhere, just look for it. you can try to vacuum out some of it yourself.

FYI in my opinion that Lexus dealer that claimed they did a flush and used some shift additive was just robbing a gullible ignorant customer. They surely just did a drain and fill. You cannot do a flush on this unit and since it has no torque converter to store fluid when it is stopped, there is no benefit. All the fluid gets drained when the drain plug is removed.

 

I would still recommend that do not do flush. Simple drain and fill.

Salim

 

thanks for the info everyone....much appreciated.....also, do I tell the Lexus dealer to change out a transmission filter or because this isn't a "normal" transmission there would be no filter....thanks

 

You would be much better off financially if you stay away from the Lexus dealership and find a well-respected independent shop familiar with Lexus / Toyota hybrid vehicles to do this work for you. The Lexus dealership will gouge you big-time for this service.

 

believe it or not, the local toyota dealership is $100 more then Lexus to do the same exact service.....the independent ones are pretty much the same or more.....i was shocked as well

 

Agreed, going to the dealer will be unnecessarily expensive. An indie Japan specialist is a best bet. BTW, when were brake fluids and coolant last changed?

 

they were changed recently

 

Being totally brand new to Lexus, forgive me if this is known news but my mind has been blown


My mother recently purchased a 2014 Lexus RX350 with 77k miles.....I called to set up a trans service for her.....the dealership told me Lexus HQ some years back told them starting around the 14 models to not do a transmission fluid change on them

The service guy said that if you absolutely want it, it would cost around $1200 and take a bunch of hours with tons of doo dads and gadgets hooked up to the car to do it......am I living in some kind of Stephen King bizarre dimension where car manufacturers keep the same fluid in a car from day 1 until the last day of a car??? Maybe this is a post COVID nightmare, hopefully so, probably just a bad dream and I'll wake up soon.
If not, Sorry, I'm an over the top maintenance freak.....does this sound correct to all the Lexus experts on here?

Is this a new way for Lexus to sell customers a new car when the thing breaks down due to old fluids destroying their cars??

 

Or not. Dealerships are much more likely to pile on other items that you don't need. Independent shop can't absorb ripping people off like a dealership can.